Buoyant Skimmer With Central Float for Pool Debris
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional pool cleaning devices require significant manual effort and struggle with directional maneuverability, especially when extended, due to the weight of the pole and skimmer, and lack effective 360° rotational movement, leading to inefficient debris collection and potential fatigue for operators.
Innovation Solution
A buoyant skimmer apparatus with a central floatation assembly that allows for 360° rotational and directional movement, relieving the operator of the need to support the weight of the pole and skimmer, using a float positioned at the center of the frame and collinear with the pole, enabling effortless debris collection from the surface and subsurface.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If manual skimming is used to collect debris from pool surface, then debris collection is achieved, but operator effort and time consumption increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a floatation device that provides buoyant force to counteract the weight of the pole and skimmer assembly. This anti-weight mechanism allows the skimmer to be supported by water displacement rather than operator strength, enabling effortless maneuverability and reducing physical strain while maintaining effective debris collection capability
Solution Approach 2:
The floatation device acts as an intermediary between the operator and the skimmer frame. It transfers the support function from the operator's muscles to the buoyant force of water, mediating the interaction and enabling the operator to control the skimmer without directly bearing its weight
2Area of stationary object
If the pole is extended to reach distant areas of the pool, then cleaning coverage is improved, but the weight and difficulty of maneuvering increase
Solution Approach 1:
The floatation device counterbalances the increasing weight of the extended pole assembly, allowing the operator to maneuver long poles (extending to 18 feet or more) without experiencing proportional increases in difficulty. The buoyant support remains constant regardless of pole length, enabling extensive cleaning coverage while maintaining ease of operation
3Adaptability or versatility
If conventional skimmers are used without central floatation, then simple construction is maintained, but 360° rotational movement and directional control are limited
Solution Approach 1:
The floatation system is segmented into distinct functional components: the floatation device itself, the attachment rod for securing the float to the pole, and the skimmer frame. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized independently while working together to enable 360° rotational movement and precise directional control without excessive overall complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The attachment rod serves as an intermediary element that connects the floatation device to the skimmer frame while allowing rotational freedom. This intermediate component enables the float to provide stable buoyant support while the skimmer frame can rotate 360° around the pole axis, achieving versatile directional control with minimal added complexity
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The apparatus significantly reduces operator effort, enhances maneuverability, and ensures effective debris collection across the entire pool surface, maintaining the skimmer frame centered at the waterline with minimal force required, improving cleaning efficiency and reducing operator fatigue.
Implementation Method 1
A float assembly including a float attached to at least one of the pole, the handle, or the frame so that the center of the float is positioned at the center point of the frame
Implementation Method 2
utilizes a central floatation assembly to support and enable 360° rotational and directional movement of a skimmer frame on, about and below the surface
Data Source
AI summary
According to the embodiments illustrated herein, is an apparatus for cleaning and skimming debris on, about and below a surface of a body of water. The apparatus comprising a handle connected to a pole, a frame configured in a generally circular shape having a center point where the handle is attached to the frame. Attached to the frame is a mesh, in the shape of a net to collect debris from at or about the surface of the body of water. A float assembly comprising a float attachment rod and a float, that is attached to either the pole, the handle or the frame so that the center of the float is positioned at the center point of the frame at a collinear point along a central axis line that runs through the frame, the float, the handle and the pole.